Learning by rote is sometimes useful but in the main I think this is where there is no underlying rationale, or that rationale doesn't help much with the getting the answer quickly. There is no reason the letters of the ABC (or any other alphabet) are in the order they are so rote learning is your only option. You could derive all the tables from first principles but it wouldn't be sensible. The order of the UK kings and queens is another rote thing. So yes, rote has its place. But for example looking at the times tables and seeing the patterns offers insights simplw rote learning does not.